The present invention relates to an apparatus for automatically dispensing tennis balls, and in particular, to a vending machine for dispensing cans of tennis balls.
Presently it is a common practice for employees of tennis facilities to sell tennis balls directly to patrons. However, this practice is inefficient and inconvenient for patrons, particularly in busy facilities, where the wait to obtain tennis balls may be long. Similarly, consumers who play tennis on remote public tennis courts typically have to purchase tennis balls at locations other than the tennis court sites. The practice of providing for the purchase of tennis balls at tennis facilities or at other locations for use at remote tennis courts is both time consuming and expensive for the tennis facilities, whose employees must provide such service to its patrons. As well, the practice of purchasing tennis balls at locations other than tennis court sites is time consuming and inconvenient for consumers.
Dispensing machines have been developed for a variety of articles, such as beverages and canned foods. Typically, such machines deliver articles along a generally serpentine track or chute to a dispensing space. For example, Beesley, U.S. Pat. No. 2,901,118, discloses a storing and dispensing apparatus having a serpentine chute along which containers of food are stored and fed by gravity to a dispensing space. The apparatus of Beesley includes a plurality of storage cells which are adjustable to accommodate different container sizes. Similarly, Negishi et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,590, discloses a dispensing machine having a serpentine track interconnecting a loading space with a dispensing space, and having means for adjusting the track for different sized articles.
Other dispensing machines have been developed which store cylindrical or spherical objects in a hopper area, and deliver them to a dispensing space along a simple track. See, Garvin, U.S. Pat. No. 3,175,669 and Bock, U.S. Pat. No. 3,946,847. Several dispensing machine improvements have been directed to improved means for dispensing cylindrical objects one at a time to a dispensing space. For example, Rockola et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,613,945, discloses a solenoid operated vend and feed gate, while Moss et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,190,179 disclose an improved device employing a pair of spaced, rotatable disc-like structures which rotate in concert to release one cylindrical product at a time from a shelf or track.
A drawback of these dispensing machines, however, is that they are designed for canned goods which are relatively short in length. Although some machines are adjustable within a given range, they remain unsuitable for larger and longer cylindrical containers.
Accordingly, while dispensers have long been known for various articles such as canned foods and beverages, the need continues to exist for an economical means for storing and dispensing tennis balls which will provide quick, easy, and efficient sales to patrons of tennis facilities and remote public tennis court sites.